Today, the first Netherlands CH-47F Chinook helicopter will be handed over to the Defence Helicopter Command (DHC) . NLR has been and will be involved in many fronts of expertise with this helicopter, like Mission Planning Systems, certification and cockpit modernisation.
In the year 2007 the Defence Materiel Organization (DMO), representing the State of the Netherlands, has ordered six CH-47F Chinook helicopters. Before these helicopters can be delivered and become operational, a time consuming and intense phase of testing has to occur. And now, at the conclusion of this phase, DMO will hand over these helicopters to the operational user, 298 Squadron of DHC.
NLR has been involved in many areas with the Chinook. NLR has provided assistance in the procurement and development of the transport Helicopter by providing a permanent project member to the DMO project team. Through this capacity, NLR was involved in the ground and flight test program leading up to the certificate of airworthiness. Furthermore, NLR participated in the man-machine interface design of the modernized CH-47F cockpit, as well as in the test phase. NLR has gained a lot of knowledge on the existing CH-47D Helicopter with respect to the measurement of structural loads in various locations in the helicopter related to a variety of manoeuvres, a program that will be extended to the Netherlands CH-47F.
